Faded Away
by xlightafire
Summary: A chance meeting. Could it lead to something more?


**A/N **So my bestest friend ever has a story on here called, _Me, You and My Medication_, it's the first story I ever fell in love with. The entire thing is utter perfection, if you haven't read it yet, you need to! Her username is: xShelliAteYourSandwichx, I promise you won't be disappointed. ;)

Any who, this story is an AU one. How I think Clarissa (her OC) and Ted would've met if they weren't in the WWE. It's a fun little thing, and I hope you enjoy it! And Shelli, I hope this helps get those creative juices flowing. I love you!

The story is loosely based on the song "Lonely Eyes" by Chris Young, feel free to go have a listen!

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_Lookin' for Somethin'_

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It was a typical Tuesday night for him, his favorite bar was having his favorite drink on special, so here he was in his usual seat. Surrounded by the regulars, he dipped in and out of conversation with the bearded man next to him. Tomorrow would be a jam packed day for him, so he figured a few beers and a couple of those drinks would help relax him enough to fall right to sleep when he got home.

Nothing too exciting, just the life of a single business man.

Chuck – the bearded guy – was well past his buzzed state, and slipped very quickly into extremely drunk. Yelling across the bar to the annoyed bartender, making unnecessary wages on the weekend's football games, checking out the much younger women in the back of the room. He was his usual self, but that didn't mean that everyone who was used to it, liked it. His antics were sort of a buzz kill for the other people around him.

Almost as if on cue, a bell went off through the building, signaling that someone had opened the door. Within a few moments, a curly haired blonde was right next to Chuck. The woman's name was Carla, she was his 8 month pregnant sister; her presence meant that someone had called her to come pick up her unruly sibling. Times like these made Ted happy that he didn't watch much television, he had a drama unfold right next to him on a weekly basis.

"Charlie, how many time do I need to tell you to control your drinkin'?!"

With a sly grin, he replied, "Why don't you pitch that speech to me one more time? I didn't quite catch it last time."

"You better act like you got some sense and go get in the truck. I don't have the patience for this right now."

"Just let me have one more."

The blonde shook her head feverishly, "No, you either leave with me now, or you can walk home."

Taking his last swig of beer, the man finally complied with his sister's request. He grabbed his belongings, and bid farewell to the people around him; telling them that he'd see them sometime in the near future.

Moments later the duo were out of sight and out of mind. Ted enjoyed the sound of the music that he could _finally _hear. Hank Williams Jr. an all-time favorite of his. He signaled to the bartender that he'd like another drink, he was certain that it'd be his last of the night, his alarm clock was set for 6 AM the following morning.

He watched the woman put his drink together with great interest. The girl wasn't particularly appealing to him, but she was good at what she did, he always admired a person who was passionate about what they did. Even if their current job was only a means to an end.

The sound of the door opening once again, cause him to look over at the entrance.

That's when he saw her. Her figure was covered by skinny jeans, and a bright yellow _Hello Kitty _top. Was her hair pink? He couldn't quite tell, but that didn't matter to him. She was absolutely beautiful.

It was cleared that she'd never been there before, as her eyes scanned the smoky room. Tugging at her outfit, she began to walk confidently in his direction. She was headed straight for the seat Chuck had just abandoned a few minutes before, with really no other place to sit, it made sense.

Once she was close enough to him, he jumped out of his own and pulled hers out for her. He was only doing what his dad had taught him since he was a boy. But hey, if it won him some points with the lady, that wouldn't hurt him at all.

"Thank you, sir." She offered him a small smile and slid into the chair.

"It's no problem, ma'am."

They sat in silence for the next few moments, with the jukebox being the only filler between the two. Her drink and phone were keeping her occupied for the moment. He watched her out of the corner of his eye. She was absolutely stunning, sort of looked like a porcelain doll. The perfect amount of make-up, enough to accent her looks, but not take away from her natural beauty.

For a moment they caught each other's gaze, her hazel eyes were enough to make him melt. They didn't stay locked for long though, as the bartender brought them both drinks again. But he felt like he could still feel them staring into his own.

He wasn't sure what it was, but he felt like they had so much to say. They were just searching for the right person to tell all her worries to. Were they hoping that maybe he was the one?

Maybe it was just the alcohol talking, but he was sure ready to listen.

The clock overhead them read 11:45. Not only was the bar going to close at 12:30 or so, but he could also feel his body starting to shut down on him. In his early thirties, his partying all night days were well behind him. His pink haired neighbor was also calling for her last drink.

Something inside of him told him to start a conversation with her. Even if it was the shortest thing in the world, he had to try something. He should probably ask for her name, that way he could look her up sometime. Nothing creepy, but he was sure that she was bound to have some sort of social networking site; it wouldn't hurt to find out what she was like.

"I've never seen you around here before, mind if I ask you for your name?"

There, that wasn't creepy at all.

She shrugged, "My name's Clarissa Train. I'm sorta just passing through for work."

He nodded, "I'm Ted DiBiase. What do you do for work?"

"I'm a fashion blogger. I basically get paid to travel the world, and stay on top of the latest fashions. It's fun, and something I'm passionate about, so I can't complain. What about you? What's your job?"

"I'm the CEO of a company my dad started. Basically I'm just in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly."

She laughed, "I know what a CEO does, Ted. But what kind of business does he have?"

"Hunting apparel, along with other hunting supplies."

"Oh, that's fun, do you hunt a lot?"

He shrugged, "I always say, if you're too busy to hunt, you're too busy."

Her laugh was something magical, the way her eyes twinkled, everything about her was mesmerizing at this point, "That's catchy, you should trademark it."

Before either of them could say another word, the bartender ordered them to finish their drinks, as she was shutting down for the night. It pained him to have to drink the last of his beer, if he could make it last longer than necessary, he would. Why did life have to get in the way of his fun?"

"Well, I guess I better be going. Thanks for the talk Ted, good luck with all of your business endeavors… and hunting."

Before he could finish signing his name on his tab receipt, she was halfway to the door. He wanted so badly to spend more time with her, but he didn't want her to get the wrong idea about him. Sighing, he slid his phone out of his pocket, and began to dial the familiar number if the local taxi service.

Walking outside the saw that Clarissa was standing outside, without a vehicle in sight. Was she waiting on a taxi too? She probably had someone from her work coming to pick her up. She seemed frustrated when he got a good look at her face, like something had gone wrong.

"Hey, is everyone alright?"

Her hazel eyes were welling up with tears, "Oh Ted. No, nothing is okay."

"Anything I can help with?"

"Take your pick. Every single hotel in this town is booked, my flight got canceled, my boyfriend is driving me insane, and I have no idea where my luggage is."

Sitting next to her one the wooden bench, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "Hey, I have an extra room for you at my place."

She shook her head, "No, no, we don't know each other… I –"

"I know what you're thinking. But I'm not that kind of guy, hell, I'll be on the other side of the house."

Their gazes held each other for quite some time, the sound of the two taxis pulling up was the thing that broke their silence. Grabbing his jacket from the space next to him, he sighed.

"You can do what you want. But if you take me up on my offer, just tell your cab driver to take you to my place. And make sure you throw in Junior, or you'll end up at my dad's, and that won't set well with mom. Keep your head up, Ms. Train."

He had hoped that by the time he got to the cab door that she would've been behind him. No such luck. When he turned around, she was still in her same spot.

"At least you tried." Was all he could think of when his ride pulled out of the parking lot.

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**A/N **So what did you guys think? I think that ending is screaming for a follow-up chapter, yes? Let me know in a review! =)


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